At Mount Rainier, some chestnuts to fuel the fire

Published 10:00 pm, Wednesday, September 11, 2002

Tom Merrill takes an old-school approach to coaching. "The kids are getting so they think I'm nuts," says the Mount Rainier assistant, "and that's all right."

Tom Merrill takes an old-school approach to coaching. "The kids are getting so they think I'm nuts," says the Mount Rainier assistant, "and that's all right."

Photo: Loren Callahan/Seattle Post-Intelligencer

At Mount Rainier, some chestnuts to fuel the fire

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DES MOINES -- Two handfuls of teen-age boys knock heads between blocking dummies on the practice football field of Mount Rainier High School. Through the sounds of crunching shoulder pads and pubescent grunts, Tom Merrill, 67, fires nuggets of football wisdom acquired over 42 years of coaching.

"When your feet hit the ground, you're live meat," Merrill warns. "If you don't break the pain barrier you will not be a good Seamount player."

After 23 years of dominating the Seamount League as head coach of Kennedy High School, Merrill knows how to win; after two losing years with league doormat Tyee, he also knows that losing isn't for him.

"Nobody is ever going to outwork him," said Kennedy coach Bob Bourgette, who coached under Merrill for 23 years, taking over with Merrill's departure in 1995. "I don't care who you are, or who you think you are, your team had better be ready when you play him."

It has been seven seasons since Merrill left Kennedy in search of a head job at a 4A school. He never found what he was looking for. Now, the Washington Football Coaches Hall of Fame inductee has returned to the league that made him, though not as he anticipated.

Merrill's son Mike beat him out for the Mount Rainier head coaching job, leaving only an assistant spot for the old man.

"Who wants to hire a coach in his 60s when you're building a program?" said Kennedy Dean of Studies Jerry Seitz, a personal friend of Tom Merrill. "You want a young, handsome guy who can talk to the kids."

Despite being a grandfather, however, Merrill maintains his reputation for scraping every ounce of ability from his teams.

"I'd run through a brick wall for coach Merrill," said former Kennedy lineman Jack Gladstone, who went on to help the University of Washington win the 1978 Rose Bowl. "The only question would be how fast he wants me to run."

Gladstone, who now records American Indian folk music from his home in Kalispell, Mont., remembers the 1974 Seamount League championship game against Kentridge.

"They were bigger, stronger and faster, but we were going to beat them," Gladstone recalled. "They had an option quarterback, and Merrill told us to hit him on every play at all costs. We won the game 14-7. Their quarterback was so gun shy by the end he couldn't do anything."

Hard-nosed, old school football was Merrill's game from the start.

"In the 60s, when he was an assistant coach at Blanchet, a kid came out for football with long hair," recalled Mike Merrill. "Dad took him in the locker room and shaved his head. Can you imagine? You'd never get away with that today."

Today, Merrill's tactics have mellowed, but his passion for football still pushes him beyond the norm.

"The kids are getting so they think I'm nuts, and that's all right. Pretty soon, we're all going to be nuts and then it'll be fun," Merrill said. "We've got to be like Rocky. We're all Rockys right now out at Mount Rainier."

On Oct. 5, the Rockys will face the Apollo Creeds of Kennedy.

"It'll be the Super Bowl," Merrill said. "On one given night, sometimes you can do things people think you can't do."

Merrill has made a career out of such surprises. On the practice field, the determined old coach blows his whistle to signal a new drill.

"I want you to kick his butt," Merrill shouts. "Who's going to be the challenger here? This is like Friday Night Fights."

Mount Rainier's Friday nights have needed Merrill's fight for years.

METCALF RETURNS: Seattle native Terry Metcalf has made a career out of returning: returning kicks, returning punts, returning smiles. Having made his final return to the Northwest as an assistant coach for Franklin High School in 2000, the former NFL Pro Bowl running back now appears ready to stick around.

Metcalf will take over the head coaching job at Renton High School, where much work is needed to make contenders out of the Indians.

"He's a neat guy and he works really hard," said Hazen coach Byron Wilson. "I've driven by their practices and you can tell he's got the kids out there working hard."

Close to 34 years ago Metcalf endeared himself to South Seattle football fans when he earned first-team All-Metro honors, rushing for 1,055 yards and 15 touchdowns at Franklin. Now, as head coach of Renton, he must find a fan base farther south.

Having yet to play a game, he's already earned the respect of coaches around the league.

"He's a classy guy who brings a lot of experience to that school," said Highline coach Jim Ward. "It may not happen right away, but I've got a lot of respect for that man."

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Metcalf sees his role as multi-faceted: "I'm going to try to build a program -- not just football but education also," he said. "I want these kids to go to college. I want to make good men out of them."

NOTES: The Seamount League gained a fourth berth into the state playoffs this year. To accommodate the extra spot, four teams from both the King and Pierce divisions, instead of the usual three, will advance to the league playoff Nov. 12. . . . Along with Mike Merrill and Metcalf, the King Division welcomes another new coach, N.B. Long. The former coach of Clover Park in the Seamount's Pierce Division, Long takes over the head job at Lindbergh from J.R. Snider. . . . Two hams at Lindbergh, Merlin Brittenham and Erick Haddenham, are defying stereotypes of stupid offensive linemen. Brittenham, who maintains a 4.0 grade-point average and scored a 1450 on his SAT, is being heavily recruited by Ivy League schools. With a 3.9 GPA, Haddenham is smart enough to keep his buddy's ego in check. . . . Evergreen lineman Enele Afereti is among the most talented big men in the league, but will not suit up for games on Fridays or Saturdays. Afereti isn't injured; his father is a Seventh-day Adventist minister. Luckily for the Wolverines, they play three games on Thursdays and the league playoffs are on a Tuesday.